Nicholasland
The Imaginary Lands of Nicholas (Traditional Chinese: 大東夏聯合民主共和國, or simply 東夏), often abbreviated as ILN, officially though rarely as The Third Kingdom of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas, or sometimes referred to as Lands of Nicholas (to minimize colonization effects of the name), is a sovereign state occupying a vast majority of the Pacific Continent. The sovereign state refers itself as a kingdom, and is a unitary state consisting ten autonomous countries, kingdom-directly controlled territories, and special regions. This united kingdom is governed by a supranational government, with a unitary parliamentary system, where each sub-national unit of the kingdom has representatives, and is headed by the king. The seat of the government is located in the kingdom's capital city — Nicholas City. Spanning over 10,000,000 km², the kingdom is the second largest country in the world, after Russia. Located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean on the Pacific Continent, the kingdom is approximately 1,200 km west of Nemuro, Hokkaido on its eastern coast; and 1,550 km east of Tofino, British Columbia on its western coast. The Imaginary Lands of Nicholas is bordered entirely by the Northern Pacific Ocean, sharing only very short land borders with the U.S. state of Alaska (Adak Island) to the north and with the U.S. state of Hawaii (Kauai Island) to the south. The kingdom has a relatively long history with over 4,000 years of civilization, initially settled by the Huaxia (Traditional Chinese: 華夏) tribes as early as the 2100s BCE, according to archaeological evidences. The kingdom went through a long period of European colonization beginning in the 1500s and ending after the world wars. Through European colonization, as well as immigration worldwide, the kingdom became one of the most ethnically-diverse sovereign states in the world. The kingdom is officially bilingual (Cantonese and English), with many other recognized regional languages. The kingdom is home to 7.2 million inhabitants as of 2012, the most sparsely populated sovereign state in the world. It is a developed country with a very high Human Development Index (HDI). Being one of the world's middle power, the kingdom is one of the richest in the world with a Purchasing Power Parity value of $50,000 USD per capita, and an emerging economic power. The kingdom becomes a member of the United Nations after the kingdom's re-establishment on April 2, 1993, and since then taking an active role as an international player. With the kingdom's background in European colonization, the kingdom is involved in various international committees, such as the Commonwealth, Francophonie, APEC, and the WTO. Etymology The name "Imaginary Lands of Nicholas" has only emerged in the 16th century when the kingdom was exposed to European settlement and colonization. For all along history, the kingdom refers to itself as the "Great Eastern Xia" (Traditional Chinese: 大東夏). In 1602, when the Multi-cultural revolution succeeded, the king-in-exile, Tak Long the 18th had got himself an English name "Nicholas", and all subsequent kings are referred by this name. Since the kingdom was not officially overthrown, the European powers who attempt to colonize the continent had renamed the kingdom as "The Imaginary Lands of Nicholas", to signify that the kingdom's presence is only a symbol, and "imaginary". Nicholas refers to the King's English name. Though challenged many times by Nicholasers of the kingdom, for the name bears such strong colonization flavours and a disgrace to the kingdom, the kingdom still bears this name today as its official name, and known to the international community as this name. The translation of the native Chinese name, "Eastern Xia" is sometimes used, though less common. History Pre-Historic Era (21?? BCE - 1993 BCE) The origin of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas can be found in legend stories as well as written records in Oracle bone script. Historians at the University of Watersauga and the University of McCallister are currently studying the scripts, and combining with legend stories, to make an educated guess on the Imaginary Land of Nicholas' beginnings. It is believed that in the 2100s BCE, the Hao culture (Traditional Chinese: 昊) was on-war with the Huaxia culture (Traditional Chinese: 華夏). Back then, Xia Dynasty (Traditional Chinese: 夏朝) under Taikang (Traditional Chinese: 太康)'s control. To protect the children from the war, the Hao culture constructed several rafts, and sent their 1,000 male and female children, as well as 200 highly respected adults and elders to float adrift on the modern-day East China Sea. This was done so in hopes of that they can start a new life away from Mainland China. According to legends, the convoy of rafts departed from the modern-day LianYunGang City (Traditional Chinese: 連雲港市) and drifted for over twelve days southeast on East China Sea. Another version of the legend was that rainstorms have flooded villages in Mainland China in the 2100s, and as people were fleeing from the storm, they sat on rafts and wooden debris from village structures, and floated in the sea for twelve days and nights, before reaching the shores of the current Imaginary Lands of Nicholas. However, archaelogical evidence do verify that there was a migration of population onto the continent some time in the 22nd century BCE. The party eventually landed on the shores of West Nicholas Bay, settling in the present-day Regional Municipality of Long in the present-day Neopia and Fort Clarkson area. The present day Fort Clarkson is one of the oldest cities in the world, according to archaeological evidence, was incorporated c. 2000 BCE, making the city the second oldest in the Greater China region. First Kingdom of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas (1993 BCE - 1602 CE) Spread of Population on the Continent Soon after settling in Fort Clarkson, according to scriptures, the local area established a market town in about 100 years after the arrival, and was named the "Cheung Long City" (Traditional Chinese: 長朗市), it remained to be the largest population centre for decades and even centuries to come, and a major political centre. It was recorded in scripture that the First Kingdom of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas was established on April 2, 1993 BCE, with the capital set in Cheung Long City. And since the kingdom is situated to the east of "Xia" where the population originated from, the kingdom was named "Eastern Xia" (Traditional Chinese: 東夏), a name which is retained until today. The Kingdom's initial sphere of influence is quite small, only in Cheung Long City and its immediate surrounding areas. In the 19th century BCE, the King ordered exploration further into the continent, and adding in any discovered territories to the kingdom's area. People who are willing to move out of Cheung Long City to form any sort of civilization will be subsidized. In this period of time, between roughly 19th and 16th century BCE, more than 50,000 people moved out of Cheung Long City, about 70% of the estimated population back then. In the 18th century BCE, population has generally spread to the central parts of the continents, and settlements began in the current Gravenhurst Region, and by the 17th century BCE, population had spread further east into the current Periodic Table Region. It is not known why the population has spread in this fashion, along the southern shores, but most probably owing to the pleasant climate in the area for cultivation of crops. There is also another stream of spread of population towards the north, however, that remained fairly minor. It is theorized that some of the population went into the present Hawaii area in the 15th century, and they became the indigenous population of the area since. It is also theorized that the current City of Watersauga and the Free State of Torbury were not settled until very late in the historic period was due to the active volcanic activities in the neighbouring Hawaii Archipelago, as well as active seismic activities. Peacefully growing Due the Kingdom spreading far and wide, and the population base was not large to begin with, the kingdom had experienced very few political crisis or military uprising due to a lack of conflicts and a lack of group divisions internally. Unlike its mainland counterpart, who was involved in the "Spring and Autumn Period" (Traditional Chinese: 春秋時代) and the "Warring States Period" (Traditional Chinese: 戰國時代), the population was able to grow steadily, along with culture and technology. It was at one point the world's major economic power (though exporting and importing did not exist back then). The kingdom was in a blooming state of prosperity, and is known as the "blooming era" (Traditional Chinese: 中興時代). Historians also credit to the king's efficient governance of the kingdom for this blooming era. Each city-state back then were given semi-autonomous home-rule, and the tax rates were fairly low since a military force is not present at all. The Kingdom also preserved some of the known history and the known knowledge prior to the 200s BCE, as the kingdom was not under the rule of Qin Dynasty in Mainland China, and thus has escaped the "Burning of books and burying of scholars" (Traditional Chinese: 焚書坑儒) in 213 BCE. The sparse population prevented conflicts among the kingdom's residents throughout the years. Though there were military conflicts here and there between the kingdom's provinces and autonomous states, the conflicts remained minor and affected the kingdom minimally. European exploration , the first colony of the kingdom, was under Portuguese rule in 1611.]] The first European contact recorded was in 1536 when a group of Portuguese explorers landed in what is now Portas do Cerco. A trade post was subsequently established in Spring 1537, marking the first European colony on the continent. More Europeans from various European nations arrive in the subsequent fifty years, and a lot of foreigners begin to settle on the continent, given the continent's wealth of resource and plenty of room for population. At that time, the indigenous population was at 3.8 million (according to the 1539 census of the kingdom), and by the end of the century in 1599, the foreign population was on par with the indigenous population, at 4.1 million and 4.2 million respectively. With an influx of European population, the indigenous and the European had an uprising tension. The kingdom has imposed heavy taxes and other protective measures to protect the kingdom's indigenous population. The European community gathered up and declared the "Multi-cultural Revolution" (Traditional Chinese: 多元文化大革命). The Multi-cultural revolution began as a series of protests across various cities in the kingdom in late-1601. The protests were to fight for more rights, especially trading rights and governing rights, for foreigners. These protests quickly became violent, and in some cities, there were genocides and various military conflicts. Fires arose and burnt many cities. With a lack of military force, the kingdom effectively had to give in before further damages were done. The king agreed to transfer some administrative power, along with trading and limited governing rights, to the foreign population provided that they have enough support in their respective community. The agreement was signed on 18 February, 1602, and this has ceased the protests across the kingdom. However, with the transfer of power, the kingdom effectively collapsed. Places went into self-governments, though unofficially recognized globally. This ended the 3700-year rule of the kingdom. During the revolution, it was known that the population has dropped drastically from 8.3 million to 5.1 million. 18th February is now commemorated as the "Collapse Day". The Western Division (1602 - 1815) under British colonization after The Western Division.]] Followed by the collapse, the continent virtually fell to a state of anarchy. In fall 1602, months after the victorious multi-cultural revolution, the European powers on the continent began to fight for resources and the continental land. Initially called the "Great Civil War of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas", historians now refer to as "The Western Division" (Traditional Chinese: 西方瓜分國土之爭), usually regarded as the predecessor event of the "Eight-Nation Alliance" and the invasion of Mainland China. Through late 1602 to late 1609, the "Seven Years War" involved various European force, including the UK, France, Russia, Portugal, Netherlands, Spain, Italy, and Germany, engaging in a series of wars on the continent. The UK and the French forces was largely victorious, successfully colonizing most locations on the continent. Prior to the Western Division, all of the aforementioned European forces have presence on the continent. The Seven Years War has driven Spanish, Italian, and German forces out of the continent, making them losing their initial settlements and trade posts. The UK has established a continuous kingdom along the shoreline, largely occupying the current Gravenhurst Region, City of Watersauga (shore areas), Free State of Torbury, parts of Long Region, etc. The French has captured some of the current Gravenhurst Region, Greater McCallister, Cosmoplay Region, some parts of Long Region, Concord County, and Pickering County. The Russians colonized the current Periodic Table Region and a vast majority of uninhabited arctic lands to the north. Portugal has managed to keep its small colony around Portas do Cerco. The Dutch generally occupied the southeastern capes of the continent and the Lovia Archipelago. The capital of the kingdom, Cheung Long City, was also captured by the UK, and was renamed as Fort Clarkson in 1609, when the British King, King James I announced Fort Clarkson to be the new capital of the British Crown colony of Pacific. The Western Division has laid a keystone to the kingdom's future, of incorporating these colonial languages as official languages, and to establish a true vibrant culture today. Second Kingdom of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas (1815 - 1937) Anti-Foreign Devil Rebellion on Source Lake in then-La Pacifique Concorde in 1815.]] The European powers governed the kingdom for over 200 years. Largely, European powers are mostly exploiting the resources in the kingdom, and barely handling any other social problems, etc. in the kingdom. During the 200 years, there are resentful indigenous Chinese population against the governance by "foreign devil" (Traditional Chinese: 洋鬼子), a term coined in the era for European people. There were a few unsuccessful rebellions over the 200 years. In 1815, a nameless village off Source Lake (now QiYi Xiang of Xiehe Autonomous Region, traditional Chinese: 起義鄉, French: Village de Soulave), which was under the administration of the French colony of La Pacifique Concorde, proclaimed self-governance under an emperor of the lineage of the First Kingdom of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas. They had a motto "Chase away the foreign devil, and restore the kingdom's lineage" (Traditional Chinese: 驅除洋鬼、恢復正統), and immediately caught onto the local Chinese attention. They had privately organized an army, called "The Liberation Army" (Traditional Chinese: 解放軍), and the wars of part of the "Anti-Foreign Devil Rebellion" began in September 1815 against the French forces in what is now Sainte-Marie in Concord County. The rebellion took 35 years, and meanwhile, the Second Kingdom of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas was proclaimed to have established in 1822, with its capital set in QiYi Xiang, and this unnamed village was renamed to its current name since then. The capital was moved to Concord City (now Jiefang Cheng), then to Pecan City in 1831 after fully disintegrating the French colony, and to Archemedes in 1841 while reclaiming Gravenhurst Region, and finally back to Fort Clarkson, the historic capital in 1850. The Second Kingdom was then established, with many land still unclaimed and subject to foreign powers, like Periodic Table Region and the City of Watersauga, which was still under colonial administration. The former Dutch-colony Lovia Archipelago declared independence as the Nation of Lovia in 1876, instead of re-joining the Second Kingdom. The World Wars World War I began in 1914. To counter the Triple Alliance and the Central Powers, the Russians, British, and the French began to pull out its military forces in its Pacific colonies, and ceding back these colonies to the Second Kingdom of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas. In the early parts of the 20th century, the kingdom was largely weak due to the earlier colonization damages, and the governance of the kingdom was largely one-party authoritarian to prevent any further splitting of the kingdom. This was heavily criticized and human rights conditions were terrible; economics were largely nonexistent since all companies became state-owned during this period of time. In 1883, to expand its territory, Imperial Japan occupied much of the eastern portion of the kingdom, the current Cosmoplay Region and peripheries. The occupied territory was annexed to Japan in 1905. Japan annexed more territory in 1910, 1912, 1913, 1922, 1931, and by 1931, the remaining territory of the Kingdom is virtually a puppet state, along with Manchukuo of Imperial Japan. In 1937, the kingdom collapsed the second time, as Imperial Japan annexed the entire kingdom to its territory. On 31 July, 1937, Nicholas M. Tam the 30th was put into exile, and with the royal family, he escaped to Canada. A government-in-exile office was set up in Toronto, Ontario, as well as in British Hong Kong. Colonialism officially ended on the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas after the world war, when the Japanese surrendered, and all the lands have been returned to the kingdom. Imaginary Lands of Nicholas National Transitional Council (1945 - 1993) , located in then-capital Fort Clarkson in 1991.]] Through the unstable political environment in the last 500 years, the kingdom has transformed from one of the most peaceful and richest country in the world, to a country in political turmoil. Immediately after the world war, anarchy briefly fell in place for the kingdom. The United Nations took over the kingdom's administration temporarily at the end of world war II. Some local scholars regarded this as the "second generation of global colonization of the continent", but was generally accepted globally. Following the People's Republic of China's (PRC) establishment in 1949, the PRC would like to assert its claim of territory to include the continent, citing "the continent has historically been China's territory and has been settled by Chinese descendents for years". However, they had not done so in order to exchange for international recognition as the sole legitimate government of China. The United Nations established the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas National Transitional Council (Traditional Chinese: 東夏全國過渡委員會) as the government of the kingdom in 1951, where the council is made with representatives from each province (now autonomous countries) and cities within the kingdom. Another task of the council was to determine the country's direction in the future, whether to split into several countries, establishing a third kingdom, or merge into existing sovereign states such as China, whom shared historical ties with the kingdom. During this time, the kingdom is known as simply "Eastern Xia" (Traditional Chinese: 東夏) in the international community. However, the topic never caught into attention of the kingdom as the kingdom was in a state of disorder. The focus of the transitional council was to re-strengthen the country's economy and infrastructure. Within less than 40 years time, the kingdom was one of the middle powers in the world by 1990, comparable to the Asian Four Dragons (Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea). In 1990, after the economy and infrastructure of the kingdom being "repaired", the topic of the kingdom's future caught on again. On 31 March 1990, the kingdom had its First Referendum regarding the future of Eastern Xia. In June 1992, a Second Referendum regarding the future of Eastern Xia was held. The result was to create a third kingdom, the modern day Imaginary Lands of Nicholas, under a constitutional monarchy as a unitary state of autonomous countries, since European colonization had altered cultures, customs, and forms of governments, between sub-national parts of the kingdom. On 2 April 1993, the inaugural ceremony of the current King, Nicholas M. Tam the 33rd was held, and the independence speech and declaration of sovereignty was also made on this day. The day marked the establishment of the third kingdom, and this is now celebrated every year on Nicholas Day. The day was also chosen to echo the establishment day of the original kingdom, about 4,000 years ago, on 2 April 1993 BCE. Modern Era: Third Kingdom of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas (1993 - Present) With political stability held in place after establishing the third kingdom, the economy of the country boomed, and became one of the fastest growing and emerging economy in the world under the lead of Nicholas M. Tam the 33rd. Autonomy within sub-national government has also allowed rapid developments and unity within each subdivision. The kingdom was not a victim of the "dot-com bubble" and the "Asian Financial Crisis" occurring late in the 1990s into the early 2000s, and economy was growing steadily with the export of natural resources. In 2003, the kingdom suffered a pandemic of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which affected 1,221 people, claiming the lives of 102. Although the government has taken swift action to prevent the spread of disease, the pandemic caused an immense impact on the country's economy, in which a steady decline was recorded beginning September 2003, along with a rise in unemployment rates. In 2012, the reform of administrative divisions created more autonomous countries and subdivisions, to cater population growth. The kingdom remains to be one of the most popular immigration destination given its economy conditions, education, and environment. Geography visible in the background. The area is a part of the Lake Lydia Regional Park.]] The Imaginary Lands of Nicholas encompasses the entire continent of Pacific, and its related islands, occupying a total landmass of 12,002,416 km², making the kingdom the second largest sovereign state in the world, just behind Russia. The Imaginary Lands of Nicholas is bordered by the Pacific Ocean on four sides, while sharing short land borders with the Adak Island of Alaska in the north, and Kauai Island of Hawaii in the south. The kingdom generally lies between latitudes 22°N and 51°N, longitudes 160°E and 130°W. The International Day Line crosses through the central, uninhabited parts of the kingdom. With such a large area, the kingdom features a large variety of geographic features, as well as an abundance of natural resources. Generally, fertile plains and flatland span over much of southwestern portion of the continent, spanning over much of Long Region. The fertile plains is able to support large-scale agricultural developments, thus has been a centre for culture and civilization of the continent for over 4,000 years. Long Region remains to be the most populated subdivision of the kingdom. The Topsity - Varsity Mountain Range forms a drainage divide, running north-south beginning at Adak Island, through Bering Special Region and Gravenhurst Region, then through Midway Special Region, ending at Kauai Island. The mountain range is formed by the westward movement of the Pacific Plate, and the range contains the highest mountains of the continent, with some being geologically and volcanically active. In the interior, a plateau exists giving way to rolling hills and yet more fertile plains. The plateau is also home to a fairly significant population, including the majority of Gravenhurst Region. This plateau also features many freshwater lakes, including Source Lake and Lake Haldimond, which would form the headwaters to Dawson River, Ng River, Archemedes River, etc., where the water would eventually find its way down the plateau and into Pacific Ocean. In the southern portion of the plateau, it is generally of low-lying lands with rolling hills, as seen in the Free State of Torbury and the City of Watersauga. The elevation is especially low east of the City of Watersauga, where swamps, estuaries, and large lakes can be found. One of the world's longest beach can be found along the eastern shores of the continent. The area holds a large volume of natural gas and petroleum reserve, as well as fisheries and fresh water resources. To the north, landscape is generally rocky and barren, especially to the northwest due to the ocean currents. The tree line reaches its global southerly minimum in the Northwest Territories due to the cooling effect of the ocean currents. Hunting and trapping is a major economic source in the area. Climate The range of climate in the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas is extremely diverse. Administrative Divisions As declared by the King in 2012 with the Administrative Division Amendment, 2012, the kingdom is divided into 10 autonomous countries, 3 kingdom direct-controlled territories and 5 special regions. Autonomous Countries The autonomous countries contain the most populated areas in the kingdom, and enjoy the highest degree of autonomy within the kingdom. As entrenched in the Modern Constitution of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas, these countries are autonomous within the sovereign state of the Imaginary Lands of Nicholas. Though historically, they are referred to as "Regional Municipalities" (Traditional Chinese: 區), "Counties" (Traditional Chinese: 縣), and "City-state" (Traditional Chinese: 城邦). These designations have been kept, despite all subdivisions became "autonomous countries" under the modern constitution. The newest-created autonomous country, Xiehe, was the first to receive the designation as an "autonomous region" (Traditional Chinese: 自治領). Listed by population (2010): Kingdom Direct-Controlled Territories The kingdom direct-controlled territories are comprised of federal (kingdom) important territories, usually for military defense and administrative purposes. The kingdom's capital, Nicholas City, is one of them. Special Regions The special regions are largely unincorporated areas and mostly uninhabited. Some special regions include an independent subdivision within the kingdom for minority cultural groups. These regions have drastically less autonomy compared to autonomous countries, but more than kingdom direct-controlled territories. They are usually under immediate jurisdiction of the kingdom, though the local government may make certain by-laws subject to kingdom approvals. Footnotes *